Hitting 'save' doesn't cut it: what to do about the 'digital abyss'

Nor can he access the first-ever digital image he saved as a professional photographer, initially stored on a floppy disk and repeatedly backed up on (now obsolete) hard-drives over the years.

These memories, once safely stored in the latest cutting-edge technological devices, could soon be lost forever to what Mr Eason terms 'the digital abyss'.

"As technology changes and fails us, we can't access these photographs even though we know it is there,” he said.

The veteran photographer illustrates this point by spreading each of his back-up devices on a table and attempting to plug each into a modern laptop. None of them fit.

He finally presents a USB stick, which has been corrupted, the stored contents lost.

"If this is what can happen in the last 25 years, imagine what will happen in 25 years,” he said.

"I love digital imaging, I think it's the best thing to happen to photography, but people need to understand and take measures to protect their photographs.”

The veteran photographer said the best way to combat the ever-increasing arms- race of technology was to embrace old-school methods.

"Identify your important images, print them, keep them dry and keep them safe,” he said.

Mr Eason pointed to printed photo-books and albums as a cheap and relatively simple archiving tool, but emphasised the need to distinguish between important photographs (weddings, birthdays, milestones like a child's first day of school) and the less-important selfies and snaps of our coffees.